


Under Currents

by firewolfsg



Category: Devil May Cry
Genre: Demons, Gang Rape, Gore, M/M, Non-Graphic Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-26
Updated: 2013-01-26
Packaged: 2017-11-26 23:42:41
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,880
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/655685
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/firewolfsg/pseuds/firewolfsg
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A DMC gift fic to Calico, based on her story Undertow. Remus is an original character created by Calico. And this fic was written with her permission.</p>
<p>Summary: Two years after the events of 'Undertow', Dante is captured again and this time Redgrave gets involved.</p>
<p>Written December 2004</p>
            </blockquote>





	Under Currents

It had been over a week since Dante's disappearance. Redgrave had received the first report on unusually high demonic activity around the rundown and abandoned hotel at about the same time. But it was only a couple of days ago that he put two and two together and had his people put other feelers out among their contacts.

When the pictures came in, there was no more doubt in his mind where Dante was. It made Redgrave recall his friend's last disappearance two years earlier. All he knew about that time were the nibbling bits of information garnered from the city rats about a contract being out on the man.

From the pictures his men had managed to gather, he could see that this time it was much worse. From several shots, he could pick out the table of filled syringes near Dante's head and the manacles about his wrists that held the man to the blood and fluid sodden bed. Whoever arranged this clearly wanted Dante helpless for a long time. There was no question that there would be no escape.

Redgrave drove to the police line and stood with the officers, listening as scream after scream drifted faintly to them from the distant building. From the expression on the faces of his people, Redgrave knew that this did not sit well with them.

Their every instinct yelled at the policemen to respond to the agonized cry of distress. However, they were also smart enough to acknowledge that it would be suicide to try a rescue attempt. The entire police department of several states would not have near the necessary manpower or the firepower to face even a quarter of the demons present at the dilapidated hotel. Their deaths would make no difference to whomever it was they sort to help. Short of calling in the army and the National guard, there was nothing they could do. And the two organizations would hardly respond to a civil emergency which fell far short of any threat that might impact national security.

In any case, even if he had the favours to call upon, Redgrave couldn't break cover and expose the association between the hunter and the police to their enemies. For all the demon population thought, he was just another human in the justice system trying to keep his own kind from becoming involved in demonic activities.

Redgrave clenched his fists to see the scores of demons coming and going from the building, some stopping to point and laugh at the police line that had been set up around the perimeter. But there was nothing that the humans could do about the situation.

"It's..." One of the officers turned a pale face to Redgrave. "--taking too damn long for it to be a human."

"Male, sounds like." The other uniformed policeman nodded. "I'd put my money on it being a Halfling. Jus-- just-- thought they'd just kill the things. Never recall seeing them drag it on s' long before."

'Not in the human world in any case.' Redgrave kept his thoughts to himself. He had worked enough cases with demons to know that they did so love to play with their victims. Only thing was-- humans were fragile creatures to them. No human could have withstood demon rape for hours, much less the days that this-gang bang had been going on. On a demonic scale, humans never lasted long as a toy of torment. 

Redgrave was quite sure that Dante's demon blood would prevent him from dying. But he couldn't say what state of mind he would emerge with.

They cringed to hear another particularly sharp scream of agony. "Lord, the poor bastard must be some sort o' celebrity among the demons. 's been going on for days now an' there's still loads o' fuckers coming an' going."

The officer didn't know how close he was to the truth. A chance to fuck the last scion of Sparda the betrayer would be too tempting an invitation to pass over. The lesser demons may not have dared to take up the enticement, but there were plenty of older and more powerful demons who would leap at the opportunity provided. 

The policemen stayed staring at the scene before them in mounting frustration, knowing that someone was suffering, though not why. "Don't know which is worse." The other officer said softly as they started to notice the silence. "When we hear him, or when we don't."

Redgrave's head was filled with the images that his men had procured. He still dared not to watch the video that they had also found. When he had had the pictures spread over his office desk, Redgrave had tried to focus on everything else but the silver-haired man he recognized as the Halfling hunter who earned his respect and did so much to help his department. But there was little information to discern from the incidental aspects of the pictures that was of any use to call a halt to the man's suffering.

They could tell which ballroom he was in, one of the medium sized rooms in the old hotel, which could hold over a hundred. From the few pictures that was focused on the crowd, they knew that the-- 'event' was mostly attended by the greater demons. The kind the hunter regularly took down in his work. The kind Dante might raise a bit of sweat facing only if he was careless.

They had the hunter splayed on a mattress that was placed on a platform in the centre of the room. That and the table of drugs told a significant story. That it wasn't chance or bad luck that had befallen the hunter. This event was one that took planning and money to see through. The cruel set up also told Redgrave that the mastermind wanted to hurt and humiliate, but apparently not to kill the demon hunter. Lord knew many of those demons would eagerly be the executioner. They probably would have preferred to tear out their victim's throat rather than simply nip and steal a few sips of blood.

However, surely it was a lot easier to kill then to render helpless? The demons took delight in the opportunity to play with the powerless hunter, but why go to the trouble and expense? What did the Mastermind want with this cruelty? Redgrave didn't know, but he damn well was going to find out.

If-- when Dante was finally released… If he was still alive and his mind still whole, he would want these answers even more. Since Redgrave and the other humans couldn't help him now, they could at the least set things up in the future so that the Halfling could have his answers.

*~*~*~*~*

A few more days passed before all activity abruptly died around the hotel. Then there was a silence for another week before Dante answered his phone again.

"We're going out for a meal. I'm picking you up." If Dante was surprised at Redgrave's brisk manner, he gave no indication of it.

Redgrave brought him to the same posh restaurant at the Marriot Hotel where they had met after the first 'incident'. It was without doubt that Dante remembered the cosy enclosed booths and the French menus.

"Were you ever going to tell me?" Redgrave allowed the waitress to leave, after ordering for both of them, before he spoke to the tensed man sitting facing him.

"Would it have made a difference?" Dante looked everywhere but at him.

"I asked around."

Dante scowled. "And you think I didn't? I--"

"Just spent over two weeks getting the shit fucked out of you by the upper class demonic population of this city." Redgrave finished for him.

The pale man went impossibly paler. Redgrave knew that he had never been nearer death before with this Halfling as he was now when his hand shot out to catch Dante's arm as he rose to leave.

"Let go of me, Tony. The less you know--"

"It's too late." Redgrave gestured for him to take a seat again. "I'm already involved. Checked out the company that supplied the dope they used on you."

That got his attention and brought Dante's eyes up to finally meet his. "They were clever enough to set up a human company and laboratory to do their dirty work, but knew zero about covering their tracks." Redgrave allowed a small smile to quirked his lips. "And where there are only humans, my kiddies and I are in our element."

Redgrave drew a piece of paper with an address from his jacket pocket. "It's the Chairman's pet project at the pharmaceutical brunch of his company; a drug to keep Halflings under control. Supposedly, a drug that was intended as a law enforcement aid when we're faced with taking in Halfling perps.

"Thing is, it needs to be injected, which isn't too bad, if it means the police can be armed with dart guns. Except for one little problem… The drug had to be tailored. My guess is our pigeon managed to pick up a pint or two of your blood some how--"

Redgrave went silent as Dante suddenly started cursing under his breath. "I take it you can identify a time when someone could have harvested some blood?"

Dante did not answer. Instead he grabbed the piece of paper from Redgrave's hand and looked as if he was about to leave.

“Sit down. I didn't come here to eat two lunches, and I already ordered.”

The hunter resumed his seat, but his eyes were still downcast. He seemed not to pay any attention to the attractive waitress who glided in to serve the two men their food, though Redgrave could see her give his friend very suggestive and speculative looks.

For a long moment they sat in silence eating the food placed before them until Dante at last lifted his head to look at him from behind his silver bangs. “Tony--?”

“It'll be okay…” Redgrave told him nonchalantly as he delicately plucked a piece of meat off his fork. “Nothing needs to be said, Dante.

"Just watch yourself, will you? That bastard? He's old family, but nothing that my kids can pick up. Don't get too corky."

Dante only grunted as he went back to eating his meal.

*~*~*~*~*

Redgrave knew that something was very wrong when he was several blocks away from his precinct. His feelings of dread were only confirmed when he found the building cordoned off by a police line with several squad cars from a nearby precinct blocking off road access to the area.

“Tony!” He heard the call the moment he stepped out of the taxi and turned towards a familiar face. The commissioner from his neighbouring precinct strode towards him and grabbed his hand in a firm handshake. “Thank god you were out. It's been a panic.”

He stared at his building, only now noticing a body hanging out one of the windows. Detective Simpson, from corporate investigations, the man who gave Redgrave the name and information he had just passed on to Dante.

Shit! Was he traced after all?

“What's the situation, Ismal? Have your boys got your gear up?” He turned grim eyes towards his friend and allowed himself to be pulled towards a police van.

At Ismal's nod, the young technician pulled up several screens and described the situation to Redgrave as he pointed to the monitors. “It looks like most of the people in your office are still alive, Commissioner Redgrave. Here, here and here, your men are hold up in defensive positions--“

“Armoury, infirmary, conference room.” Redgrave obligingly identified for them. “Any communications?”

“None yet, sir. Looks as though whatever ever went in pulled up all the com lines. We have boys in the basement trying to splice in cables and repair the damages.”

“What went in?”

The officer swallowed hard and pointed to the last monitor. "There-- there's evidence of a fire, sir. Put out now, but..."

“My office.” Redgrave's voice went soft as he looked over the readings listed on the bottom half of the screen. “A Goatling...”

Ismal squinted to read the other lines on the monitor. “Indications of a recent fire-- A Blood Goat!” He started cursing under his breath. “Allah preserve you, Tony. What the hell were your boys doing to attract something like that?”

“What ever we need to to protect the people in this city.” Redgrave rose to his feet and nodded towards the monitor. “I'm going in.”

“Are you mad?!”

“No. It looks like I'm expected.”

“What?!”

“Whoever that is, it's powerful enough to slaughter every human in that building without raising a sweat.” Redgrave told his listeners as he straightened his clothes and checked the gun in his shoulder holster. Not that his firearm would offer much damage to a demon of the calibre he was about to face. “It left three pockets of my people alive and is just waiting in my office. It's waiting for me.”

“Tony--“

“I'm not losing any more of my people. I'm going in.”

*~*~*~*~*

Redgrave faced the building again, very conscious of the number of eyes watching him from the streets and the surrounding buildings. Ismal and his boys had given up trying to dissuade him from his course of action and he didn't have to look at any of them to guess that they thought he was walking in to meet his maker. All his instincts yelled at him to leave, but this was his precinct. It was under his responsibility, he could not turn his back on his people.

The smell hit him first before the sight of the gore that covered the walls and floor of the offices. He let himself take a good look around, identifying the dead and the damages. Christy, the receptionist-- not too long at the job. Poor kid probably never knew what hit her. Old man Chucky, from admin, the guy was just six months from retirement. He had great plans for spending his retirement years in Florida fishing and walking the beaches, far away from the city life he had grown so tired of. He'd never do it now.

As he walked through the silent corridors identifying the dead, Redgrave still found some quiet comfort in his ability to name every one of the staff in his precinct. He told himself that if he came out of this alive, he would make sure no one was forgotten.

The main detectives' office showed an anomaly he hadn't been expecting. The whole office was damp, clear evidence that a fire had briefly flared and was doused, and there was a dead demon lying in the centre of a blast field not too far from where Simpson hung out the window. Curious-er and curious-er… if he read the status markings right, it was in the upper middle ranks of demon society. It wasn't a human weapon that did it in too. There was a hole, big enough to throw a bowling ball, burnt through the centre of its chest.

'Shit.' He remembered a similar looking hole in a wall Dante had showed him two years back at the site of his battle with a demon. Also, no Blood Goat would have been able to handle a demon of the calibre that lay dead at his feet. “It just had to be an Abyss Goat, didn't it?” He huffed to himself in resignation. Redgrave just knew who it had to be too. He wondered if it was too late to give Dante a call and ask the hunter to pick up his ex-dancing partner.

He shook his head sharply as if to rid himself of the snide thoughts. Two years later, it still rankled that Dante had refused to share with him the happenings between the hunter and the big cheese at Club D.O.A. Redgrave's curiosity about killed him since he had lost all his info lines at the club after that debacle. It took him ages to cultivate new moles just to stay in the 'know' of activities in that area.

That was a pity. Without inside help, it had been impossible to find out anything on the drugs that were used on Dante during the first abduction. This second time though, Redgrave wondered if the Abyss Goat was back-tracing the leaks at the Club.

Aware that he shouldn't delay his confrontation any longer, Redgrave took an assessment of the dead and quickly strode towards the conference room. Looking over the innocuous looking sigils that was etched into the corners of the door made him glad that he had the foresight to arrange for protection runes to be distributed in some areas of the office.

“Lightner? Chan? You kiddies still kicking?” He rapped sharply on the door.

“Chief?!” He could hear the beginnings of a click that foretold of the lock being disengaged.

“Don't open the door!” Redgrave leaned against the door to prevent it from moving, carefully exerting just a bit more strength behind his push than one would think he was capable of. “Stay there until you get the ‘all clear’.”

“Bu--but there's another one of those demons out there--“

“That's an order, lieutenant!” He barked harshly, knowing that his men would rather face the fires of hell before disobeying him when he used that tone of voice. “Do you have any casualties in there?”

“We-- There're seven of us in here, Chief. We're all okay. We're--“ Chan's voice sounded strained, but she was still holding up under pressure.

“Stay alive, boys and girls.” Redgrave interrupted her, knowing that he could count on her to keep it together. “I'll be back.”

“Chief…”

“Stay. Alive.”

*~*~*~*~*

If you were to ask him, after having walked though the carnage of his department, the last thing Redgrave expected to see in his office was a human with short brown hair, elegantly dressed in a suit straight out of Armani. Somehow it annoyed him that a masquerading demon would think nothing of clothes shopping at the same places he frequented. It annoyed him even more that the demon in human-guise turned and genially smiled at him before invitingly gesture for him to take a seat on his own sofa in front of the TV.

A quick glance told him all he need to know about what the demon was engrossed in watching. It was one of the DVDs that Simpson had passed to him along with the pictures and his report. The DVDs that Redgrave had resisted watching, already knowing from the pictures that it would be bad. That assessment was clearly an understatement. As brutal as his imagination had been to think of Dante's suffering, the video was infinitely worse because he knew what it showed was real.

The engineer who put the film together had done an excellent job, splicing together sounds and scenes smoothly and seamlessly in a masterpiece that could be considered love in its construction. One after another, it showed demons of all shapes and sizes mounting and shoving their massive cocks into the helpless body on the mattress; showed demon come splattered over the silver haired Halfling or wiped on his come and blood encrusted thighs as each rapist finished.

Artful pieces of music had been weaved in and synchronised with Dante's movements as he twisted against the manacles holding his wrists over his head while he was raped by demon after demon. The long pauses that marked the moments the Halfling had been allowed to rest and heal were spent devotedly panning over a brutalised body, which was flowered with cuts and bruises, and splattered with demon come. The camera often lingering over clawed hands that wiped him down with a dirty cloth.

Redgrave had steadfastly tried to ignore the TV in favour of studying the demon seated near him. A Goatling king in human guise; most probably the same one Dante tricked into giving him a Halfling death which opened up another level of his powers. Redgrave remembered the silver haired hunter showing disappointment in not finding its carcass where he had left it. Redgrave was quite sure that meant it had still lived. A conclusion substantiated by his later observation that it was still heading club D.O.A. Dante never bothered telling him what it was called though.

The demon's human form had brown hair that was cut short with a spiky fringe that sat well with the finely chiselled face. The demon, he observed, also had a contoured body of a well kept man in his early 30s. It made Redgrave wonder whether all demons could consciously choose such comely forms. This demon was named 'Remus,' if he recalled the reports right. Considered somewhat like royalty within his clan, if he could believe the dribbling of information his city rats regularly sold to him.

After a silence between them that last nearly 20 minutes, broken only by the cries and sounds coming from the TV, Redgrave couldn't hold his tongue any longer. "Haven't you seen enough?" he asked angrily during one of the lulls in the gang bang when the demons stopped to wipe down their victim and give him a short breather to heal enough for the next round of fucking. 

"No, not really. Still, truly nothing beats being there in the flesh." The demon gave him a toothy grin. "Why? Do you have a poor stomach, Pet?"

Redgrave refused to let the demon bait him. Against his better judgment, he turned to look at the TV to watch as a demon pumped another full syringe into the moaning Halfling whose demon blood did heal his body quite impressively.

As with the start of these rape sessions, Dante was much more alert and sensitive after being allowed time to recover. He screamed himself hoarse while the next several demons tore into his newly healed body. 

"There are more of these, I take it."

"Christ, they nailed him for over two weeks. What do you think?" Redgrave gritted while Dante mercifully slipped into shock and stopped screaming with every thrust of a cock into his bleeding hole.

"Yes, then there will be more of these movies." Remus intoned grimly as he watched one demon make a long scratch across the man's torso before letting his rough tongue lick at the blood that welled up from the wound. All without breaking the rhythm of its thrusting hips. Dante had squirmed in pain, but the demon's huge handed grip of his hips and buttocks ensured his immobility. The most he could do was move his head. And another demon had soon reached over to grip that and forced his mouth open to allow the first demon to plunge his agile tongue down his throat too. 

"Over two weeks, you say?"

Redgrave frowned at the demon. "Weren't you there? I'd think you know better than me when it started and when he was finally released."

"No. I was away." Remus' eyes stayed glued to the screen as a slight scuffle broke out among the waiting demons for the privilege of being the next to fuck the insensible hunter.

"Then you missed a great party." Redgrave spat as he nodded to the TV as it showed yet another demon grabbing the prone man by the hips and impaling him on yet another impossibly long cock.

"Apparently, I did."

Recognizing the anger expressed in the words, Redgrave snorted, "If you're important enough. I'm sure you won't miss the next 'party.'"

"There will not be another 'party.'" Remus was glaring at the TV now as a tentacle limbed demon stepped forward to take its turn.

Reduced winced and this time he could not stop himself from turning away as Dante started screaming in agony. By the time it was satisfied, the demons had backed off to wipe down their toy again and allow him to heal.

"There will be no next time." Remus said grimly in a voice that promised carnage.

Redgrave eyed the demon calculatingly. “I take it you weren't with the fucker outside my office.”

“A minor irritant.” Remus sniffed disdainfully. “They will not bother you over this matter.”

“Are you offering protection?”

The demon turned towards Redgrave as he raised an eyebrow at him questioningly. Their eyes met for the first time and Redgrave felt a slight consternation and confusion to see the demon smirk at him. “I offer nothing to a human, Commissioner.”

Shit!

“One often wonders how Halflings can survive in a society that is so prejudiced.”

Redgrave shrugged nonchalantly, keeping his cool. “A lot has evolved since humans were forced to accept seeing your kind appearing in our society from time to time. Especially demons able to assume human guise like you.”

Remus smiled at him, not willing to let him redirect his attention. “You are different, Commissioner.”

“Not many see that.”

“And I would have admittedly missed seeing it too if we weren't seated so close.”

They stared at each other across the sofa, not showing any signs of awareness that the DVD had finished playing and the screen on the TV had turned blue.

“It isn't good to hold off your first death.”

“What makes you think it won't be an only death.” Redgrave took out his cigarettes and casually offered one to the demon.

The demon stared at him harder. “So very different… Do tell? This is indeed interesting.” He accepted the offered cigarette and a light. "In the 1,000 years that I've hunted Halflings, I don't believe I've ever met one like you."

Redgrave shrugged dismissively. "Unlikely to find another.”

“Are you so noble that you think you can challenge centuries of prejudice? But the ‘why' of it seems so much more interesting.”

Looking at the demon from the corner of his eye, Redgrave gave in, realising that this was a battle he was going to have to concede. As long as he kept the Abyss Goat intrigued, his chances of survival went up. “Given that it was a Halfling who used his blood to save my life over a decade ago…” Redgrave pointed his cigarette at Remus as if to punctuate his point. “That's enough proof to me that they are human enough to deserve a law enforcement officer's protection, just like any other human citizen.”

“Tainted by a Halfling's blood…” Remus chuckled to himself and shook his head in as if in amusement for Redgrave's futile stand. “You grow more amusing with each moment I spend in your presence.”

"So...” Redgrave strove to change the subject not wanting the demon to start asking him how he was able to mask his uniqueness, or to ask who the Halfling who saved him was. “What tipped you off?"

"There is very little that goes on within the club that I do not hear."

"Like that?" Redgrave snorted in the direction of the TV.

Oh, Redgrave could tell he was really playing with fire. He reminded himself quietly that he had better rein back his clever tongue if he wanted to live through this meeting.

Remus didn't rise to his bait. “You gave Dante a name?”

“It is his right.”

The demon looked away as if considering the thought. "Perhaps… but he doesn't know half the story."

"Even where there's only human involvement, there's only so much I can find out that's on human records.” Redgrave frowned at the demon suspiciously. “I never did learn how demons came to contact this company. It has legitimate trading operations over several continents though the pharmaceutical branch of it is somewhat new. That was an anomaly.”

“True enough, you'd be in difficulty to discover the puzzle.” Remus blew out a long stream of smoke. “His family has been in the Halfling sex slave trade for generations; More years, in fact, than I've spent as a Halfling hunter. We were in competition for a time.”

Shit! Did he just send Dante into a trap? It explained the professional quality of the DVDs and pictures produced. Given a Halfling's capacity to heal so quickly, if someone was able to control one in the sex trade, the poor bugger would be a gold mine for its owners. Shit!

“Quite… He's still at his home though.” Remus interrupted Redgrave's thoughts as though he had just read his mind. He reached over to pull another cigarette from the pack Redgrave left on the table. “As I said, there's very little that I don't know regarding demon activity-- when I put my mind to it.”

Redgrave let a loud sigh leave his lips, trusting the demon and setting aside his worries about his friend for the moment. “Am I going to lose all my moles again?” He figured to ask outright. Remus had as much as announced that he knew of Redgrave's hard forged information network among the demon underground.

“It depends.” Remus gave Redgrave an assessing look. “It has-- rather occurred to me that we could both reap some benefits we would otherwise not have alone.”

Redgrave couldn't stop his eyebrow rising in interest. “It's never been done before.”

“When has that stopped you, Commissioner? I dare say you have been one of the most unconventional humans I've ever met.”

The implicit offer lay heavily in Redgrave's mind. There was no precedent in human history of such an alliance between a highly placed human in law enforcement with a high ranked demon. Then again, even if there was, it was safer all around that such a partnership remained a secret. He could not be seen to have an association like that and expect to remain a commissioner for very long.

“Just information sharing?” Redgrave didn't bother deceiving himself to think that the deal would be an equal affair. He was as much as being blackmailed into the position. If not the revelation of his personal secrets, there were also the lives of his people in his information network to consider.

“And… maybe some warnings.” This just as well told Redgrave that he might get notices to pull out his people, if he wanted them to live. At the end of the day though, that would be preferable to losing them.

“Are you also offering to take care of the demon side of the situation, for a mutual-- friend?” Redgrave asked boldly, the gears in his mind were moving rapidly and he was pulling together a lot of other clues. “That why you just happened to come by my office to deal with that thing out there?” He jerked a thumb behind him.

Remus scowled at him as he took a long drag on the cigarette. “Believe me, it was not my intention to interfere. But it was annoying.”

So… Remus was actively trying to protect Dante. “Lips are sealed if yours are too.” The smirk escaped him before he could rein it in.

Redgrave tried not to allow his trepidation to show as the demon rose to his feet and stood over him. “You amuse me, human. And that is something I have never said about one of your kind.”

Redgrave inhaled a lungful of smoke and let it out again slowly. “Bully for me. So… what can I really do for you?”

“You have interests in the hunter.” Remus moved away to pick up the DVD box and look at the other two discs in their protective casing.

“That any of your business?” Redgrave kept his voice calm and unruffled. He sensed that he was soon to hear the real reason why the demon came to see him.

“Perhaps-- I do not like to share.”

That statement made Redgrave narrow his eyes at the demon angrily, given what it was now holding in its hands. “Fine job you've made of it so far.”

The DVD box with its discs was crushed in the demon's hands. “There will be no repeat of this.”

“Dante will be glad to hear that.”

“But you will not tell him, human.” Redgrave nearly flinched at the demon that suddenly loomed over him. It appeared to be a good move to control his desire to shrink away from the menacing figure. His show of nerve apparently impressed the demon.

Remus was smiling at him. “Perhaps, I've been too hasty. After all, his walls will be even more impenetrable than ever before. You may certainly try to enjoy him, human. For the remainder of your life even, if he capitulates." The demon laughed at him as he pushed himself away and headed towards the door. "But he will eventually be mine for the rest of his life."

“I seriously doubt he will be agreeable to your claim.” Redgrave told him coldly.

“Perhaps he will have no choice.” Remus told him as he stood at the door of the office.

“Why?”

“Hmm?”

“Why this interest in Dante?” Redgrave decided to be blunt about it. “Why are you interested in his continued protection?”

“I keep my own council, Commissioner.” Remus gave him an enigmatic smile, “Perhaps it is because he amuses me as much-- perhaps more than you do.”

*~*~*~*~*

Redgrave finished the cigarette before he was ready to move off the sofa. All around him was quiet and he knew without checking with the crew in front of the police lines that the demon had just left the building. He could hear the renewed flurry of activity outside which told him that Ismal's people were readying themselves to come in to clean up and count the dead.

He must have been mad. Redgrave tried to re-examine his actions that led him to have this strange conversation with an Abyss Goat. He had mixed ideas about telling the hunter about this meeting. At the end of the day, the demon did deliver a threat he could not ignore. They would keep each other's confidences; share a bit of information… Redgrave had a lot more to gain from his confrontation with the demon if his secrets remained in the dark.

Apart from that bit of upset, plus the deaths of good men and women under his command, Redgrave could still count it as a good day. At the least, he had an assurance that Dante's pain would never be repeated. Given enough warning and assistance, the Halfling would be on his way to have a safe chat with the Halfling-sex-slaver CEO about the drug and Remus made a promise that the demons would never have a gangbang party with the hunter as the guest of honour ever again. And Redgrave knew that with the other demon's death in his office, he had also been given an implicit pledge that other demons would never directly attack his precinct again. All in all, they were results he could live with.

With that last thought, Redgrave stepped out of his office and headed towards the conference room to give his surviving people the all clear. He had to call Dante and give him the heads up on the CEO. Then he had work to do, funerals to arrange, an office to rebuild and a damn good lie to construct to explain what just happened to have a pair of demons decimate his office and later allow him to live to tell the tale.

Gods. Some days, it just didn't pay to get out of bed.

~Owari~


End file.
